Summer is peaking in the Southern hemisphere, and while the days become longer and the temperatures rise, you might hopefully find yourself in Cape Town. While you may have planned some things to do – Here are some tips on what the best places are for fun, relaxing and exciting things in the Mother City. From the obvious beach day to a more thrilling day of surfing, this list covers it all for a long summer day.

Pure white sand and sunshine are all you need for a relaxing day at the beach. Even better are the mountain views from Cape Town’s beaches. The most popular being Camps Bay Beach between the Twelve Apostle mountain range and the Atlantic Ocean. Camps Bay is famous for its sunset view on the beach. Hidden between rocks and buildings is Clifton 4th beach, which is out of the wind and perfect for a game of volleyball. If you are looking for a view on Table Mountain than Bloubergstrand Beach has a stunning view. The beach is located further away from the city center than the other beaches. However, you will have a panorama view of Cape Town with Table Mountain rising above the Mother City. Because mountains do not surround it, it’s perfect for kitesurfing.

After a long day in the sun, it is time to relax and see a movie. The Galileo Open Air Cinema is a movie screening in an open grass field during the warm summer nights from October 2019 to April 2020. Every Wednesday till Saturday and selected Sundays, they play various movies from blockbusters to family movies. The location of the cinema depends on the dates, on Wednesdays and Thursdays, the films are shown in Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens and the other days switch between places such as wine estates and city parks. The movie starts as soon as the sun goes under, and the venues offer various snacks. Make sure to bring a blanket and enjoy your movie under the stars.

During the summer, you can feel the thrill of catching a wave in Muizenberg. Surfing may sound like an impossible thing to learn. However, you can start learning from various surfing schools in Muizenberg. Even though you have no experience, it is a fun and exciting thing to learn. With surfing schools, you will learn the basics of surfing, such as the rules, paddling, and more. If you need more lessons, you can also go to a surf camp where you will learn to surf in a couple of days. After surfing, you can spend some time in the small town or sunbathe on the beach. For the experienced surfers, you can easily rent a surfboard and wet-suit nearby the beach.

On Sunday summer afternoons, Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens hosts live music in its garden. The grass field will be covered with people setting up their picnics while the venue opens for food stalls as well. It is the perfect place to gather with friends and family while enjoying the music and the natural beauty of the garden. Bring your picknick basket and a blanket or pre-order one at Kirstenbosch and lay down in the grass. Celebrate the music of local and international artists while being surrounded by the biodiverse plants of South Africa and Table Mountain.

As a more extreme alternative, you could do paragliding. There is no experience required when doing a tandem glide, so no need to worries since everyone can do it. You will jump from either Signal Hill or Lions Head, which requires a small hike. However, you will have an amazing and exclusive viewpoint once you are up in the air and glide above the coast. While soaring through the sky may sound scary, the surroundings of Cape Town provide enough distraction to enjoy the moment, before landing safely on a grass field just below the foot of Lion’s Head.

Cape Town offers various hiking trails, and there is almost always one for every fitness level. During summertime, it is recommended to bring sufficient water as well as to start early to avoid the heat. You can hike a trail up Table Mountain for a spectacular overview of the city bowl. It might be that you don’t have enough time to do a hike. If that’s the case, you can also take the cableway to the top of Table Mountain. Or go for a scenic sunset hike up Lion’s Head, which is much shorter and has a stunning panorama view of the city, Table Mountain and the coast.

During your stay in Cape Town, you must visit the Cape Winelands. Because of the natural beauty of the area and the award-winning wines. Try to visit as many wine farms as you can to taste the difference between the estates. You could join a guided tour that shows you the most exquisite estates, the history of the area, and a well-needed crash course for wine tasting. Also, another option is the wine tram in Franschhoek, which is a hop on and off tram along the local wine estates of Franschhoek. Both options show you the beauty of the wine estates and let you taste the fine wines of South Africa.

A braai, also known as BBQ, is much more than cooking food on fire – It is the gathering of people. For South Africans, it doesn’t matter what time of day it is; it could be breakfast, lunch, or dinner as long as it is on an open fire. South Africa offers various kinds of high-quality meat, and it is the main food for a braai. It cannot be mistaken for a barbeque since a braai is on open fire only, and gas or electric grills are considered a sin even though they might be practical in some conditions.

Early in the morning, before the heat of the day, stroll around on Cape Town’s markets. The vibrant food markets of Cape Town offer live music and plenty of places to chill while enjoying your food. There is an immense amount of diversity in the food markets, and it is hard to decide which food you’re going to try this time. Moreover, the markets are filled with crafted goods, souvenirs, and products of high-quality. Overall, it is a morning well spent with the joy of the music, people, and foods.

Cape Town is full of new and unique places that pop-up all the time. So, there is always someplace to eat around town. The areas with restaurants, bars, and cafes are Kloof Street, the V&A Waterfront and Camps Bay. The latest has one of the best sunset views in Cape Town. You could relax on the beach and gather friends to go to the trendy cafes on the boulevard. While Kloof Street is filled with various restaurants for everyone’s liking. Afterward, you can hop to the place next door or the restaurant you are staying in transforms into a bar for a fun night.

While Cape Town has much more to offer all year round, this list covered the absolute must do’s during your summer stay in the city. The Mother City offers various exciting activities for the adventurer while also making sure you can relax on the beach or chill at a vibrant bar in the social hubs in town.